The World Above
by cosettedaae
Summary: A chance encounter with the Jolly Roger leaves Ariel living among the ship's crew. Between maneuvering her newly acquired legs and life with the charming Captain Hook, Ariel certainly finds herself with more than she asked for when wishing to explore the human world. Rated T for now, M chapters to come. Hook/Ariel.
1. Chapter 1

Water coursed over her body in the usual exhilarating way. What a pleasure it was to be able to swim as fast and as well as she could, for she could think of nothing that had brought her more joy or convenience. Miles escaped her as she swam, gaps between worlds were made brief and it was all for her joyous disposal. It was however, not often that Ariel was granted company. Her girlish ways didn't make her an ideal companion to many, her love of the human world especially not granting her the company of her beloved sisters. So the young mermaid swam the days away in her own company, exploring the ocean around her and most of all, striving to gather what she could of the human world.

It was not uncommon for Ariel to come upon a ship in her path, though this was an especially exciting time for her. A ship meant men were aboard, and this was something that excited her beyond belief. The men aboard these ships never saw much of Ariel. She wasn't like her sisters who would lure the men into their clutches through their beauty and song. Ariel simply liked to observe, so observe she did. From the water, a safe distance away, she would watch a ship of jolly sailors make their way through her home, the ocean.

* * *

><p>Captain Hook, from his position on deck, spotted in the distance the young mermaid through his telescope. He rolled his eyes, not another one, he thought to himself. The girl must've been late to the party, for the Jolly Roger had just nearly escaped a swarm of them the night before.<p>

"Aye, Smee! Warn the men a siren lurks to the east, I'll do my best to avoid her," hand and hook on the wheel he steered his ship as best he could to avoid the distant mermaid. A young one, he observed, keeping a steady eye on her as they approached. She swam to counter them, this worried him further. What was she planning?

"Clear of the mermaid yet, captain?" Smee asked upon his return.

"No," Hook kept his eyes out at sea. "Alas, she's lurking from a strange distance. Far enough off, but I don't trust her."

"Is she beautiful, captain?"

Hook rolled his eyes, taking in the portly man. "Aye, Smee. She's a siren, what else would she be?"

Smee shrugged but the Captain began speaking his thoughts aloud.

"It is rather unfortunate, is it not? That sirens be what they are, sirens. I've seen mermaids that exceed the beauty of the most lovely women on land by tenfold. A shame they couldn't, oh… oh nevermind Smee, is there something else I can do for you?"

"Aye, I mean uh, no sir," the crewman turned to leave his Captain. "Anymore messages for the crew sir?"

Hook tried to regain his thoughts, steady his mind. Were these thoughts the work of the siren? He'd not even heard her song yet. "No, that'll be all for now. Be weary of that mermaid though."

"Aye, captain," and he was gone much to Hook's relief.

* * *

><p>Ariel bobbed peacefully in the water, squinting to avoid the sun's glare to get the best view of the humans on board that she could. She wondered if the ship was sinister in any way, not too far off the waters of Neverland a ship with dark sails seemed merely to be circling the island. Curiosity plagued the girl and closer she swam. They seemed altogether harmless, for they had not shown signs of attack yet and she'd been in their line of vision for hours. Her father's warnings overtook her mind as she dipped below the surface to sneak a closer look at the ship. Were they pirates, she wondered, a thought that excited her more than scared her simply because she knew very little of pirates. Her sisters had spoken of them as a nuisance, of blundering fools who were no match for them no matter how much they seemed to think they were. She wanted to be the judge of that herself.<p>

* * *

><p>"The siren approaches captain!" Smee ran frantically towards Hook.<p>

"I see her, you fool."

"What do we do, captain?"

"Ignore her."

Smee wasn't sure how to respond. "Um, are you… sure? Last night we… that was a tough battle, captain."

"I'm aware, but this one is alone and she's not a threat to us. Please stop flailing about, will you?"

Smee hadn't thought he was flailing, but he stayed still nonetheless. "How can we be sure captain?"

The captain was becoming increasingly annoyed. "Because," he huffed. "She's not sung yet, none of us has drowned yet. I don't know Smee, have you seen any threat appear? She's only a dozen or so meters off."

"Perhaps she's not a mermaid then, just a girl in the water."

The captain did not respond.

"Please, return to your duties. And forget the sodding mermaid."

* * *

><p>Ariel wondered how close was too close, so closer still she swam. Perhaps when danger persides, that's when she'd swim away. She was world's faster than the fastest ship on water, so she was not concerned for her safety.<p>

She began to hum to herself, a habit she'd picked up in her hours spent bobbing above the surface to bathe in the sunshine. Anymore, she didn't notice she did it and, along with that, she didn't notice when her humming became singing of the most exquisite kind. The kind to turn the most sensible sailor, senseless and the kind to turn a wayward captain's hairs on end.

She heard shouting up on deck and she wondered if this was it, their oncoming attack. Lazily she lounged on her back, exquisite tail splashing in the surf before her. Her song continued unbeknownst to her, something she could perhaps credit to her constantly drifting mind.

A man's face suddenly appeared over the railing and she quieted herself with the realization that she'd been caught. Their eyes locked and she wondered if humans were as entrancing to mermaids as mermaids were said to be to humans. She felt as if she couldn't look away from him, even if she wanted to. His blue eyes pulling her in, as if they were the ocean and she were drowning.

She opened her mouth to speak to him, a human. Imagine a conversation with a human as beautiful as he. But just as she did she found herself encased in large net, being hoisted aboard a ship which just seconds ago was a mere fantastical view.

The crew stood around and watched her tail splash violently on the deck.

"We've caught 'er captain!" cheered Smee along with the rest of the crew. The mermaid looked up in horror, silence striking her pale frame as she searched for an inkling of welcome aboard the human vessel.

"Great, what do you plan to do with her now?" sneered Hook, he looked down upon the pathetic mermaid and felt pity for the creature. Why she looked just like a young woman one might see in a nearby village, she was all but a human if you were only to see half of her.

"Captain's orders," Smee giggled as if he had a devious plot in mind, but Hook simply watched her writhing figure slow to a standstill.

"Release her," he said, eyes locked in on the mermaid's. Oh, she was gorgeous, yes. But what use did he have for a gorgeous half-fish woman. And afterall, what harm had she done?

"But captain are you sure?"

Another sailor chimed in. "I was thinking we could slay her sir!"

"Yeah," cheered another. "Show those beasts what we're capable of, send 'em a message!"

The mermaid squirmed about some more. "Can you speak, love?" said the captain disregarding his crew. He knelt down beside her and she instantly coiled away in fear.

"I have nothing to say to the like's of you, you're who my father warned me about. Men like you are renowned among my kind, the true enemies of us all."

"Oh bollocks," laughed Hook, rising to his feet. "Have we a container to keep it?"

The mermaid sucked in a sharp breath of air, the droplets of water that stuck to her skin beginning to chill her along with the ocean's breeze.

"I'm sure we can find something for it, sir."

"Good, fetch it quickly."

* * *

><p>Ariel scowled up at the devious Captain, the wretched man who looked upon her with such a sense of wonder and yet such a sense of disdain. Had she only hindered herself by speaking aloud, she could not tell. She felt her tail burn in the sunlight as water began to dry from it. Where were they to keep her, she could not think of any storage fit for a mermaid and yet perhaps in the human world, such containers existed.<p>

The sun continued to burn her glistening tail as she squirmed aboard the deck. Energy drained from her and she began feeling peckish. Was this why mermaids must stray from the land, was she to dry up and decease with too much exposure to the sun's harsh rays?

"Please," her voice let out a faint whisper, one which only the captain heard as he rose from his knelt position beside her. "Please, I don't want to die. I meant no harm," a tear escaped her eye and suddenly her tail burned with a fierce intensity. The captain stared down at her in wonder and within no time at all, she no longer felt her tail at all.

But where had it gone, the feeling of her damp scales trashing on the wooden floorboards? Had it dried up and left her ability to do the one thing she loved completely absent. Men hurried with a large glass container and nearly dropped it when they caught sight of her. Oh, she was horrified to look at her tail. To look at the mess the sun must have caused to her anatomy.

"Why… you're not the average siren at all are you?" said the Captain, not so much to her but to express his own self. Looking down alas, using her arms to prop her drained body up she did no longer view a glorious array of green and blue scales but a pair of human legs attached to her very own torso.

The men stared at her, mouths agape. Had they just witnessed her tail transform into legs? Was this truly unaverage of a mermaid, or just something no one had sat on land long enough to discover? A dry tail leads to human legs, oh how could that possibly be?

"Are these… do I have legs!" She shouted excitedly, her energy regaining as she was beginning to take in what had happened to her. A dream she'd had her entire life was a reality, and all it took was being caught by some pirates before it occurred.

"Do you still want her in this container, sir?" called a stout pirate who was assisting in lifting a clear, glass casing.

"No, I don't think that will be necessary," called the man who was presumed to be the captain. His eyes were fixated on her legs, on the little seaweed that tangled around her midsection that covered other parts entirely new to her. "You are to follow me, mermaid. Men, back to your duties. If I hear you speak of this beyond this moment, I'll ensure you regret it." A large hand reached down to Ariel and she simply tilted her head to inspect it. He was more patient with her than he perhaps should have been, and eventually she caught on that she was supposed to take his hand to assist in helping her rise to her feet. Feet, what an exquisite thing to have.

He pulled up all of her weight, as she had never stood before and had no idea how to keep her balance. She fell into his arms, hands looped around his neck to keep her balance as her feet slid on the ground, attempting to understand gravity. His hands gripped at her bare sides, causing her to shiver. The entire encounter must've been incredibly awkward to witness but Ariel had no sense of that, and Hook pretended that none of his men had seen.

With one swoop he lifted her up into his arms, pretending as if he hadn't the time to deal with a woman learning to walk for the first time when really he had no complaints in holding her lithe form in his arms.


	2. Chapter 2

To the back cabin he took her, her body still damp with seawater and legs swinging and kicking as she was beginning to discover some of the many functions of them.

"Please, will you sit still?" he asked of her, sitting her down on a settee in his quarters. "Now, I'll have to find some clothing for you. The men will not be able to handle themselves with a naked woman on board."

"I'm to stay aboard then?" she asked all too excitedly.

"Until we reach Neverland and I'm able to drop you off at the nearest port. Or until your tail reappears and you can return to your devilish ways."

"Devilish," the mermaid laughed. Looking down, she began fiddling with the seaweed that was very near to no longer covering her body. "I hope my tail never reappears," she mused aloud. "And I'd like to stay aboard your ship, please."

Hook laughed, "Absolutely not. Now… where did I leave that wench's dress," he began fumbling through his cabinets, through frilly coats and shirts and eventually pulling out an old tattered red dress that looked awfully heavy and like something Ariel would not like to wear around all day long. Though, it was what humans wore so she found it hard to complain when he handed it to her.

"Go behind that screen will you, I need to have a word with you after you're decent."

Decent. Ariel squealed. Oh she was about to transform into a real lady, the one's she'd only seen from afar or heard of in folk-lore. She held the dress tightly to her body and began scurrying over to the screen, nearly falling before the foreboding Captain's generous hand offered itself to her once more.

The dress was quite large, she felt it must've weighed about as much as she did. She held onto the top of the screen for support, trying to catch her bearings once more. It was twice as difficult with the sway of the sea to take account of, but with much concentration she removed her shells and untangled the seaweed from around her waist. She stood naked just for moment, looking down at her new human body with awe and yet confusion. How strange it was.

Stepping into the dress brought her her next challenge, the deep red color of it immediately standing out to her as a color not immediately attractive, not next to her own red hair or even the color of the blue ocean surrounding them. She pulled her arms into sleeves, hoping she'd correctly discerned the front from the back, yet noticing shortly she was unable to fasten the back herself, even if she did know how.

"Oh, Captain," cried the former mermaid. "I believe I'm decent… decent enough… just the fastenings on the back of this dress, I've-"

Her sentence was made short by his sudden appearance. She nearly gasped, glad she was holding the dress up over her bare chest.

"Oh, bollocks," he exclaimed. "I forgot I've… this corset is ripped in the back."

"Ripped, oh dear, how ever did that happen?"

"Doesn't matter," he stammered. "My hook must've mmm, slipped or something… but pay no mind mermaid, it doesn't concern you."

"Ariel."

"Pardon?"

She felt a warm hand on the small of her back as he attempted to pull her corseted dress together.

"My name is Ariel, and I don't believe it's appropriate for you to call me a mermaid anymore regardless."

"This dress won't do," he said, releasing his hand as the material fell loosely once more over her torso. "I'll have to find something else for you to wear. Oh perhaps I could just dump you back into the ocean."

"Oh no please. Certainly I can just wear whatever it is you men aboard wear. What do you call them… trousers?"

The captain rolled his eyes, scanning the girl one more in the dark red dress that was beginning to droop down her shoulders. He knew he would be better off if he just put her back where she came from, but where would the fun in that be?

* * *

><p>"So you've never set foot on land before, you're certain?"<p>

"I'm certain that'd be something I'd remember," she lounged back on velvet settee, adjusted the billowing blouse over her shoulders. She wasn't entirely sure how it was to be worn; the captain wore his open down the front revealing a large portion of his chest but her differing body shape didn't allow hers to wear it the same. Perhaps she could wear it just off her shoulders, revealing skin but in a different way than he did. She really didn't like being as covered up as humans seemed to deem necessary, though she absolutely preferred the too large pair of trousers to the heavy skirts she'd worn earlier.

"Is this common of mermaids though, to shift into a human form?"

"Not that I'm aware of, none of my sisters have ever spoken of it before but perhaps… perhaps they've just never had the opportunity. It is exciting isn't it! Oh I can still hardly believe it!" She threw her head back against the cushion and smiled.

"My god," the Captain shook his head. "You are an excitable one."

"I apologize, is it not proper human form to become excited? It's really not proper for us mermaids either, you know, but sometimes it's quite hard to contain!"

"Understandably," the Captain rose from his chair and walked to gaze out the window. "I just wish I knew what to do with you."

"Why, can't I stay aboard with you?"

He turned around sharply, making contact with her innocent eyes.

"And what could I benefit from having a mermaid woman aboard?"

"Why I know of no one who knows these seas better than myself," she smirked to herself. She wasn't of course completely positive if this was true, but she was a far better traveler than her sisters at the very least.

"Point made. I suppose it couldn't hurt to have you around for a while, though you mustn't get comfortable or consider yourself part of the crew. And I'd steer clear of majority of the men, they'll not know what to do with themselves with a woman around."

"Oh, and you do?" she laughed, enticingly. The Captain blushed and turned aside. "Why, don't take yourself so seriously. I was only kidding. Please, sir, what can I call you?"

"Captain will do just fine," he said, returning to his desk as if he had something very important to look at.

"But your name? Surely you have friends that don't refer to you as simply Captain."

"To you, it's Captain Hook… when we've made better acquaintance I'll let you know what you can call me."

"Well," Ariel began to rise slowly from her seat, she was finally - she hoped - getting a hang of balancing on her new legs. "If we're speaking in titles, then you ought to know I'm a Princess."

"Good to know, but I'll stick with Ariel I think. No angry sea king will be coming after my ship now will he?"

"I can't promise that," she laughed. "But once we've made better acquaintance I'll let him know you mean no harm." She crossed her arms across her chest, smiling to herself as the Captain refused to turn to meet her gaze once more. She was enjoying the banter with this man, a man much less powerful than he liked to believe.

* * *

><p>Ariel didn't mean to be snooping through his things, she was very honestly quite curious. He'd left her alone for too long, she wasn't quite sure how she was expected not to look through at least some of his things.<p>

His office doubled as his bedroom, but it was truly his desk that had the most mysteries to her. She couldn't begin to make out the usage for half of the objects, she found items that seemed perhaps useful for combing through her tangled hair but that was about it.

The Captain reentered the chamber as the sun began to set, not happy to find his new shipmate rummaging through his personal effects.

"I can't imagine what you could possibly be doing with all those papers if you can't read as I'm assuming you can't."

"That's really none of your business," she said, setting down the stack of papers she was attempting to make sense of. "Though I do recognize most of these as maps anyways… not that I can read those well either."

"Is there anything I can get you, Ariel?" the Captain slid his leather coat off his shoulders, revealing sun kissed freckled skin covered just slightly by a white blouse too similar to the one Ariel sported.

"No, I don't think so. But perhaps you could tell me what-"

"I really don't have time," he interrupted her. "I've got to get some rest while the waters quiet, I can't leave Smee out there all night, he'll kill us."

"Right, of course," Ariel looked down. She wasn't sure why she felt so let down by this man who'd shown no promise to her, in fact he'd shown quite the opposite. Their kinds weren't meant to even converse, let alone form a friendship. She didn't mean to watch as he removed his tunic and belt of his trousers, but he caught her staring for certain.

"Well, I think I'll be off to sleep, just for a bit then. You could, I suppose, look around on deck if you're careful not to fall overboard," he laughed, walking shirtless past her and into the bunk where he was to sleep.

"Perhaps in a bit, Captain," she sighed.

He climbed into the bunk under her curious eye yet was unable to sleep. The former siren didn't leave the cabin the entire time he laid in rest, and eventually when slumber washed over him he dreamt of her graceful frame dancing through the water and into his bed.


	3. Chapter 3

To Ariel, watching the water from above was most certainly a different experience. The reflection of the moon and the stars danced on the surface in a way she'd never had the opportunity to see chilled her skin, and silence in her ears was near to heavenly. Oh what a day it had been, for now as a human aboard a real pirate ship was she unable to view life in any other way.

Smee had fallen asleep hours ago, though the ship didn't appear as if it needed any real manning as it drifted along the calm nighttime waters. She'd pondered going to awake the captain, he'd surely be a better companion than the sleeping Smee and would certainly be much more able to man the ship. But she was absent minded, one moment a thought would enter her head and the next leave it as if it'd never been there. She was too overcome by the night, the air, the ocean spray and not to mention the trousers she wore over a pair of her very own legs.

"My god, this again Smee!" an angry voice startled her from her trance-like state. Hook came barging from the cabin, white tunic hanging off a bony shoulder, hair standing up indicating it'd only been a moment since he'd awoken.

"Aye, Captain!" Smee stood up in an instant, feigning as if he'd never fallen asleep though it was obvious he had.

"Get to bed, mate, before I toss your worthless body overboard."

Smee was silent as he scampered into the cabin, eager to get a proper sleep.

"And you didn't think it appropriate to wake him?" the captain said as he passed Ariel, giving the girl a quick glance before approaching the wheel.

"I was actually just about to fetch up captain, but I was…"

"Detained by your absent mind?" he said, spitefully for a reason she couldn't quite determine. "That same absent mind that got you aboard this ship in the first place."

"Yes, I would suppose so. But you see," she began to approach him, not wanting to take her eyes off the moons reflection but deciding the elegant face of the captain was a good enough compromise. "You see, I like it aboard the ship. This is all I've ever truly wanted, to be human."

"Then that makes you foolish," hand and hook on the wheel, the captain began to steer the ship towards the direction it was supposed to be headed.

"No, I actually think it makes me quite smart." She was getting very quickly used to her new legs, and nearly skipped towards him, as if dancing to music that only played in her curious head.

He laughed, shaking his head. "But why, love, would you want to be a mortal human? Living in a world with so much treachery and deceit?"

"The life of a mermaid is lonely and cruel, humans have all the fun."

"Well, I suppose you'll very soon find out if that's true of not."

With his eyes on the horizon ahead, Hook focused in on the sky. Ariel watched in amazement; the concentration he held was exquisite and she couldn't help but stare at him. Humans were exquisite, and she wouldn't allow Hook to convince her otherwise. The very vessel she stood upon was invented and created by humans; mermaids merely lived amongst coral and plants, they used shells as clothing. They were merely creatures of the sea, humans were creatures of the Earth with close to no limitations.

"Shouldn't you be getting some sleep soon?" he asked suddenly breaking yet another one of her reveries.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?"

"No," he laughed. "Just thought you might be tired. Do mermaids even sleep?"

"Of course we do, though I've never slept in a bed before."

"Knock yourself out with the one in my cabin, it won't see me until night falls tomorrow."

"Hard life as a Captain," she walked closer still to him, the rocking sea making it difficult to maneuver the deck yet adding an exciting challenge.

"A respectable one, that's for certain."

"Oh you may think me foolish but you can't fool me," she teased. "I may not be from around here but I know enough about pirates to know your lot are far from respectable. Especially a pirate captain!"

"Listen, mermaid," he scoffed, stepping away from the wheel of the ship to greet her in the moonlight. "There is quite a bit I've done that is far from respectable and quite a bit that is, and you - knowing me for a whole of eight hours - have no right to begin your judgement, don't you think?"

"Probably not, just an observation," she smiled and began humming as she traipsed across the deck. "How long until the crew awakens? It's quite nice up here with no one around."

"When dawn breaks," he leaned against a mast, arms crossed over his chest as he watched the girl maneuver his ship. "I'd get in the cabin before then love, wouldn't want to be caught up with the likes of them."

"I shouldn't very well be caught up in the likes of you either, yet here I am," she stopped her aimless wandering to turn and shoot him a grin. He grinned in return. "Besides, I think there may be a lot I could learn from them."

"Doubtful, love," he walked towards her and her body tensed immediately. She knew this man was far from dangerous and yet she still had her doubts about him. If he wanted to hurt her, he wouldn't already, that she knew for sure. But he was odd, a hunger in his eyes she couldn't define. She yawned suddenly, a new sensation foreign to her kind for their sleep schedules were entirely different. "Appears you are tired after all. As I said, better be off to bed," he cocked his head with a vicious grin.

She sighed, "It would appear so. But that will be fine, every second is a new adventure aboard this ship. I've never been in a bed before."

He raised his eyebrows, as if about to laugh, but held it in. "Off to the cabin with you," he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Sleep well."

"I shall," she smiled, and turned quickly from his sight.

Ariel had of course been exaggerating when she said going to bed would be an adventure, for she didn't much care to sleep when there was so much more of the world to see. She untucked her shirt as the captain had and plaited her hair as she sat in his bed. He hadn't bothered to make it, and she wondered if it was because he knew she'd be taking it soon or if he were simply lazy. Her head hit the pillow as she yawned again. It was far from comfortable, she wondered if that were simply the nature of beds or the nature of beds aboard pirate ships. Though it was refreshing to lie down, with the mattress still warm from his body heat beneath her. Her mind wandered aimlessly what it would be like lie beside the captain as she knew humans sometimes did, to share his body heat and to sleep beneath the beautiful stars dreaming of life on land.

* * *

><p>"Rise and shine."<p>

Her eyes peeked open to spot him sitting at a desk, watching her as she slowly rose from her slumber.

"How was that foreign bed object?" he joked with her.

"Quite stiff," she said rising, the tunic sliding from her shoulder as she drew her knees into her chest. "But I slept well."

"Great," he said, not caring much for her response, or at least pretending not to. He rose to walk around his room, he was wearing his jacket now, long and made of black leather. He was an intimidating man, that was certain, but still she was not scared of him. She wondered if he wanted her to be.

She watched him pace around to the room, wondering if he was actually doing something or not.

"The crew is wondering about you," he said, breaking the silence.

"Oh," she said. Did this mean she could finally speak with them?

"They say it's bad luck to have you aboard, they're wondering how soon we can leave you at port or just… you know."

She raised her eyebrows, shaking her head.

"Dump you back, you know, where you came from."

"But… I don't want that! What if my fins don't come back and I drown or… what if they do come back and I can never be human again?"

"I don't know love, I don't know anymore of this than you do. Perhaps less. But I do know we're a day off from port, so we can leave you on shore once we're there."

"By myself?" she said, panic sweeping over her.

"Well, you can't very well stay with us," he scoffed. "Though your company doesn't bother me, I think it's quite nice having a woman aboard… something nice to… well, doesn't matter."

"I'm afraid I don't understand," she hugged her legs in tighter, worried very deeply now that she'd all too soon lose them. "What's to become of me?"

"I don't know, love, I truly don't know," he was near the bed at that point, he stopped walking revealing that he had merely been pacing the room.

"I like it here," she said with an innocent smile, a contagious one that spread on Hook's face as well. He leaned into her and she instinctively wanted to back away, but didn't. Big eyes looking straight into his blue ones, his dirtied skin nearly touching her porcelain complexion. His lips, full and soft, hovering just near hers before they suddenly touched in a brief kiss that all but stole Ariel's breath away.


End file.
